Fr. Damien, born 1840 in Tremeloo, Belgium. He joined the Congregation of the Sacred Hearts volunteering for the mission to the Hawaiian Islands. In 1873 he went to work as a priest in a leper colony on the island of Molokai. He died from leprosy in 1889 aged 49. The testimony of the life he lived among the lepers of Molokai led to an intensive study of Hansens disease, eventually leading to a cure. Pope John Paul II beatified Damien in 1995. He was named a saint on Oct 11th 2009.

Tuesday, November 3, 2009

A Royal Salute to a Saint

St. Damien’s relic before his statue at the State capitol. His bond with the alii was celebrated as his relic is carried to the state Capitol and Iolani Palace. CINDY ELLEN RUSSELL / CRUSSELL@STARBULLETIN.COM

Honolulu Star Bulletin: Nov 02, 2009 - The peasant pastor received a posthumous royal welcome of banners, processions and pageantry yesterday in a "Tribute to St. Damien" that brought hundreds of people to the Iolani Palace grounds. St. Damien De Veuster's endearing bond with Hawaiian alii was remembered as he was honored for his 16 years of compassionate service in Kalaupapa, Molokai, where leprosy patients, most of whom were Hawaiians, were isolated. He died of the disease in 1889 after 16 years in the remote settlement. His open-hearted charity to people of all cultures and faiths won applause by speakers who included a Belgian diplomat, local elected officials and interfaith religious leaders.

About 800 people gathered at the public celebration, which followed two weeks of religious observances centered on a relic of the man who was declared a saint last month. Members of Catholic organizations brought the koa box containing Damien's heel bone three blocks from Our Lady of Peace Cathedral. They bore it on a koa platform shaped like an outrigger canoe, symbolic of the priest's travels as a pastor on Oahu, Hawaii and Molokai. The parade was met at the palace gate by chanters Puakeala Mann and Ikaika Bantolina, who gave welcoming oli. The procession included feather-caped members of the Royal Order of Kamehameha I, escorted by the Royal Guard of the Hawaii National Guard. Other Hawaiian societies wearing their colors lined the driveway to the palace, which was draped in bunting, Hawaiian flags and a large banner with the Kalaukaua crest. "It was from the palace that Damien received royal support for his efforts," said Abigail Kawananakoa, who traces her lineage to the last monarchs. She recalled correspondence between Damien and Queen Kapiolani and then-Princess Liliuokalani, who "saw the grim sadness and devastation visited on the people there." Damien's letters detailed clothing and other supplies he sought for patients, and the alii responded, she said.

Belgian Cardinal Godfried Danneels and Hawaii Catholic Bishop Larry Silva joined Kawananakoa on the bandstand to watch the proceedings, which included hula, music and a parade of speakers. Jan Matthysen, Belgium's ambassador to the United States, told the crowd, "We Belgians cherish our connection to Hawaii" -- a connection rooted in Damien. "It was interesting to see how strongly Father Damien is still in the hearts of the people. It's wonderful to see," Matthysen said at the end of the festivities. "In every way, by every definition, St. Damien is a hero," said House Speaker Calvin Say. He "will be an illustrious, permanent humanitarian in the pages of history ... cherished as Hawaii's most benevolent patron of the sick and needy."

Scott Whiting of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints recalled Damien's writings that mentioned Mormon elder Jonathan Napela as his "yoke mate" in caring for the afflicted people. "He fostered a true spirit of community between faiths and cultures and did so in the most trying of circumstances," Whiting said. "In honoring one man, we also honor the thousands of people -- patients and workers -- who, despite disease and despair, reached out to one another in love and compassion," said the Rev. Charles Buck, Hawaii conference minister of the United Church of Christ. "In celebrating Father Damien, we celebrate the strength and resiliency of the human spirit, seen over and over in the last 150 years, by patients who triumphed over hardship and hopelessness ... all the unnamed saints of Kalau-papa who show us that even in horrible times, humans will do the right thing. "Let us walk in their footsteps by offering to each other the persistent hope and insistent encouragement to live fully and love courageously," Buck said.

The relic was escorted into the palace throne room by Kawananakoa, Silva and Danneels for a brief stop not open to the public. Mann chanted prayers as it was taken to the statues of Queen Liliuokalani and Damien on state Capitol grounds. Catholic relic-bearers led the dwindling procession back to the cathedral, where more than 1,000 people had started the day's festivities at a noon Mass celebrating All Saints' Day. The relic is now secured in a shrine inside the cathedral, where services to venerate the relic will be held daily through Friday.By Mary Adamski

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++DisclaimerNo responsibility or liability shall attach itself to either myself or to the blogspot ‘Mozlink’ for any or all of the articles/images placed here. The placing of an article does not necessarily imply that I agree or accept the contents of the article as being necessarily factual in theology, dogma or otherwise.Mozlink

1 comment:

Mozlink,Forgive me for posting here, but I can't seem to find an e-mail address for you on your site. How can I get in touch with you through e-mail? I have some Damien stuff I'd like to share with you.

School Resources

Statistics of Patients on Molokai 1866-1908

Size of Molokai: 260 Square MilesSize of Kalawao: 800 acres

Number of Patients on Molokai:1866 -1151880 -1,0001908 - 791 (693 were Hawaiians, 42 Chinese, 26 Portuguese, 6 Americans, 5 Japanese, 6 Germans, and 13 of other ethnicities)Total deportees to Molokai: approximately 8,000The first case of leprosy (a.k.a. Hansen's disease) was documented in Hawaii in 1835.The first group of patients departed from Honolulu Harbor in 1866 on the schooner, the Warwick.

Fr. Damien - SSCC Missionary (Damien's Writings)

In 1990, Fr. Patrick Bradley ss.cc., the then Superior General of Damien's Congregation, the Congregation of the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary, wrote a circular letter to all the members of the Congregation entitled: "Fr. Damien - SS.CC. Missionary" with some perspectives on the future of mission. Fr. Bradley's circular gathers together many of Damien's writings, which provide valuable insights into Damien's own life, motivation and work as a missionary. Over the course of the coming weeks, I hope to reproduce this publication which you can read by clicking on the link below.

Followers

Important Dates - Blessed Damien

Pictures & Images of Damien

Did You Know?Father Damien's life and death among his people at Kalaupapa focused the attention of the world on the problem of leprosy and the plight of its victims. After Damien's death in 1889, the people of England established a fund and a commission for the scientific investigation of the disease.Mother Marianne Cope nursed those suffering from leprosy in Hawai'i for 35 years. She arrived at Kalaupapa in 1888. Her philosophy of personal dignity in the face of death came almost a century before its adoption as the foundation of the hospice movement.Sea cliffs rise two thousand feet above the peninsula and ocean separate Kalaupapa from the rest of the island of Moloka'i. In 1972 this area was designated as the North Shore Cliffs National Natural Landmark, recognized as a significant example of sea cliffs in the nation's natural heritage.

Mahatma Gandhi

Gandhi claimed Damien to have been an inspiration for his social campaigns in India that led to the freedom of his people and secured aid for those that needed it. Gandhi was quoted in M.S. Mehendale’s 1971 account called Gandhi Looks at Leprosy as saying, "The political and journalistic world can boast of very few heroes who compare with Father Damien of Moloka'i. It is worthwhile to look for the sources of such heroism."

Religious News Network - Dublin - Podcast

Pope Benedict has announced that Blessed Damien – the Leper Priest – will be declared Saint within the next year. This follows the cure of a woman, in Hawaii, of cancer through the intercession with Bl. Damien. Eileen Good of RNN spoke to Fr. Eamon Aylward of the Congregation of the Sacred Heart of Jesus and Mary and asked him about Fr. Damien and his life caring for lepers in Hawaii.

Blessed Damien of Molokai

Message to SSCC Members & Friends

Brothers, Sisters, Lay Associates and friends of Blessed Damien, please forward any images, photos, articles etc. to me for inclusion in this website. Let's build up a good resource leading up to Damien's canonisation.

BlogCatalog

Bl. Damien de Veuster

The Leper Priest, the Hero of Molokai. Born in Tremelo, Belgium, on January 3, 1840, he joined the Sacred Hearts Fathers in 1860. He was bomn Joseph and received the name Damien in religious life. In 1864, he was sent to Honolulu, Hawaii, where he was ordained. For the next nine years he worked in missions on the big island, Hawaii. In 1873, he went to the leper colony on Molokai, after volunteering for the assignment. Damien cared for lepers of all ages, but was particularly concerned about the children segregated in the colony. He announced he was a leper in 1885 and continued to build hospitals, clinics, and churches, and some six hundred coffins. He died on April 15, 1889 on Molokai. Slandered by a Protestant minister, Mr. Hyde, Damien was defended by Robert Louis Stevenson, who wrote an impassioned defense of Damien in 1905. He was declared venerable in 1977. Pope John Paul II declared him beatified on June 4, 1995.

Kalaupapa resident Kuulei Bell presented a lei and a kiss to Pope John Paul II during a Mass for the beatification of Father Damien in Brussels in 1995.

Logo - Damien Center Louvain

For more information about Damien's Order, the Congregation of the Sacred Hearts, please contact: ssccdublin@eircom.net

4. Stevenson, Robert Louis. In the South Seas. New York: Scribners, 1911.

Edward Clifford. Father Damien: A Journey from Cashmere to His Home in Hawaii. London and New York: Macmillan. 1889. 352pp.Piers Compton. Father Damien. London: Alexander Ouseley. 1933. 196pp.Gavan Daws. Holy Man: Father Damien of Molokai. New York: Harper & Row. 1973. 293pp.Charles J. Dutton. The Samaritans of Molokai: The Lives of Father Damien and Brother Dutton Among the Lepers. New York: Dodd, Mead and Company. 1932. 286pp.Omer Englebert. The Hero of Molokai: Father Damien, Apostle of the Lepers. St. Paul Editions. 1962. 364pp. Translation of Le pére Damien.Hilde Eynikel. Molokai: The Story of Father Damien. Hodder & Stoughton. 2001. 324pp.John Farrow. Damien: The Leper. Sheed & Ward. 1937. 230pp.Vital Jourdan. The Heart of Father Damien, 1840-1889. Guild Press. 1960. 500pp. Translation of Le père Damien de Veuster, apôtre des lépreux.Ann Roos. Man of Molokai: The Life of Father Damien. J. B. Lippincott. 1943. 254pp.Philibert Tauvel. Father Damien: Apostle of the Lepers of Molokai, Priest of the Congregation of the Sacred Hearts. Art and Book Co.. 1904. 206pp.

Kalawao Catholic Church

Damien Statue - Hawaiian State Capitol

Damien Icon

About Me

I am involved in the selling of stamps, related materials & some gifts in order to raise money for the missions. The stamps were a gift from a life long stamp collector who donated his collection to raise money for the missions. He told us that God had blessed him in his life and he wanted to give something back.
So in an effort to raise this money, the stamps are priced at a percentage of their market value. See Hibernian Catalogue of Irish Stamps for full value.
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